Mardani

Mardani is a term of Persian origin that appears as a surname and, less commonly, as a given name among Persian-speaking communities and in the broader South Asian diaspora. The root is linked to mard, the Persian word for man, and the suffixes used in transliteration can render the form as Mardani, Mardāni, or similar variants.

In contemporary usage, people bearing the surname Mardani are documented in Iran, Afghanistan, and communities abroad. It is relatively uncommon as a given name, but may occur in families with Persian linguistic heritage. The spelling varies with transliteration from Persian script, so Mardani may appear with diacritics or alternate vowel representations.

In popular culture, a closely related spelling, Mardaani, is known from Indian cinema. Mardaani (2014) is an action thriller about a female police officer, and its sequel Mardaani 2 appeared in 2019. While the film title uses a Hindi form that conveys qualities of courage or a warrior spirit in a feminine sense, this usage is distinct from a direct Persian term, and the two are connected mainly by phonetic similarity rather than shared etymology.

Beyond names and film references, Mardani may also occur in place names, organizational titles, or other compound names where it functions as a linguistic element derived from the same root. The precise meaning and function depend on the cultural and linguistic context in which it appears.